After seeing 300 or so films a year, I’ve learned quite a few things about the moviegoing experience: Popcorn on an empty stomach is bad news, the majority of movies released each year are formulaic drivel – a waste of time even when seen for free – and the only thing sadder than seeing incoherence rewarded at the box office is witnessing something truly brilliant trail off into utter obscurity.

Needless to say, this project has left me conflicted. Why is it that so many smart movies fail to gain traction? How can stories of substance wither on the vine while fluff rakes in a windfall? How many other brilliant films from past generations have been lost due to a lack of distribution and ticket sales? If an epic plays to an empty theater, what’s the point?

According to Techland readers, Techland staffers and my own personal biases, here they are: The five most underrated sci-fi masterpieces.

I wish there were more underrated sf films based on sf novels. i mentioned "the quiet earth" which was based on a novel. solaris and stalker are as well. dune is underrated (but not overlooked, which is a little different-many of these films are both overlooked and underrated). the 1980 "lathe of heaven" is based on a novel. PS: read "we can remember it for you wholesale" by philip k dick. its much more mindbending than total recall, which is based on it. I hate how many directors and screenwriters get away with middling SF stories and think they are saying something original. all of james camerons films, and "interstellar", dont hold a single candle to the supernovas of "childhoods end", "blood music", "hyperion", and the best hard sf soap opera, the known space series.

"The Quiet Earth", a New Zealand film from 1985. low budget, effects minimal, but very eerie in conjuring up a world depopulated from a freak accident at a research facility, which has altered reality, and which is about to alter reality again unless the creator (one of the few survivors) can stop it from automatically happening. sad, and it has believable characters, making it more like an emotionally mature indie film (not an arthouse film, the cinematography is straightforward, not artsy)

The Lathe of Heaven, The Thirteenth Floor, and Solaris (both versions, even though I know the Soderbergh version is 'Solaris Lite'). Steven's selection of Gattaca is on the money, and anybody who thinks this dystopia is impossible hasn't been paying attention.

two of the most underrated sci-fi movies in this that have to be included or at least discussed are the brilliant films, Mr nobody and man from earth. man from earth on just a budget of $200,000 is a thought provoking film which discusses and makes you think about philosophy, religion, sociology and mankind's place in the world which after all is what you want from any good sci-fi movie. whereas my personal favourite, which is Mr. Nobody, combines a brilliant storyline with some of the most beautifully shot scenes from any sci-fi movie, in fact any genre of movie. the soundtrack is fantastic and the acting by jared leto is as always superb. the use of chaos theory and butterfly effect work well within a confusing storyline that really pays off the more you watch, it is in my opinion a much better and more nuanced version of the fountain

Amanda and the Alien. Fun, bijou of a film that has a shape-shifting alien on the loose and the woman that helps it to it's rendezvous point in time to go home. Very funny and witty, yet you want to see what will happen next.

Nicole Eggert, Stacey Keach, Michael Dorn star in this very underrated TV Film that shows once in awhile, TV gets it right.

Now here is a real underrated classic, almost unknown, the original 1980 make of The Lathe of Heaven. Completely exceeded all my expectations despite an obviously low budget and will probably exceed yours. You need some patience initially but after that you'll be absorbed into the events quite quickly.

By far my favorite underrated future fiction film is the 1973 French classic Fantastic Planet. It chuffs me up to watch humanity shown as the undermonkey that comes from nowhere to wreak havoc and claim it's true potential. Great soundtrack, surreal visuals, cartoon violence and human ego boosting action.

Also, I've read most/many/lots of/too much future fiction stories and my favorite underrated written story is John Faucette's Crown of Infinity. The evolution of humanity from modern ape to future space sex god in 200 pages. Everything that's standardized in the future fiction canon has it's roots here.

I know your gonna laugh cause it got Timberlake in it but "In Time" was surprisingly good. It had some flaws but it was better than say Looper or the many sci-fi "reboots" they've attempted in the last few years. plus Olivia Wilde for 2 hrs. I'm not saying top 5 but definitely deserves a mention in the conversation.

I can't believe no one has mentioned 12 Monkeys yet. Maybe I missed it or people consider it not underrated but I feel like I don't hear it mentioned often enough and it is easily in my top five for sci fi movies. Another that I think was misadvertised and ultimately a sci fi movie though very subtly is The Adjustment Bureau which especially when viewed in that genre is really an underrated movie.

One film many Americans have never seen, which seems to be missing from many futurist/SciFi lists, is "Zardoz" starring a near-naked Sean Connery. Zardoz a giant floating God-head which dispenses guns.

John Boorman film set in 2293, examines violence & decadence, sexuality & security in the vein of "Hunger Games" & whatever that latest one w/ Matt Damon & Jodie Foster is called.

Moon was a very good movie, and almost completely unknown even though it stars Sam Rockwell and Kevin Spacey.

Dark City definitely should be on this list, but if you haven't seen it, make 100% sure that you watch the Director's Cut. The theatrical cut had a voiceover added to the beginning of the movie that ruins much of the mystery; it tells you exactly who The Strangers are, who Sutherland's character is, and the motivations of both - which is the primary mystery in the movie.

I find it bewildering that they mention Serenity (which was fairly lackluster) without mentioning the Firefly TV series (which is absolutely amazing) that spawned it. Haven't seen Firefly? Go rent/buy/stream it now. You will not be let down.

Silent Running I found to be both horribly boring, and the driving point of the plot (that Earth isn't trying to save the plants, but actually want them destroyed because... well, no real reason) to be nonsensical.

Another honorable mention should be The Thirteenth Floor, which is a good scifi tale that got completely overshadowed by having The Matrix come out the same year.

There are quite a few but I will limit myself to top picks. "Sunshine" was absolutely incredible, with its CGI and the voyagers trying to deal with the incomprehensible heat and power of the Sun. I really liked the premise of "Menancholia," with a rogue planet headed directly for Earth. Call me a dork but I LOVE "The Fifth Element" and although I've seen it 100 times I still have to watch it every time it's on cable. Especially the "Diva" scene where "Lucia de Lammermoor" morphs into Techno music which is just awesome and forced me to IMMEDIATELY buy the soundtrack. "Moon" and "District 9" and "Repo Men" all tell harsh truths about the human condition. In the Classics dept. I definitely nominate "Farenheit 451" and "Soylent Green," which seem to have been forgotten these days.

Personally I think the 2007 flick "Sunshine" by director Danny Boyle ("Trainspotting", "127 Hours", "Slumdog Millionaire") is easily one of the most underrated sci-fi movies out there. It's more "hard" science fiction in the sense it's very much based in reality, ie there's no aliens or laser guns etc. and is very plausible in the sense that it could very well happen in real life. The acting is top notch, Cillian Murphy ("Inception") gives one of his most bold performances and to be honest you can see the way writer Alex Garland ("Dredd", "28 Days Later") took one idea and stretched it in as many different directions as possible while developing the characters and the plot line simultaneously. Definitely check this out if you haven't seen it, it starts a little slow and builds into an intense visual crescendo with a complete jaw-dropping ending.

Everyone here should check out the movie Beyond the Black Rainbow. It is excellent, especially if you have patience to see the story unfold. It's unpredictable but it a great sci-fi, psychedelic flick. It's directed by Panos Cosmatos and release in 2010. Let me just say that you can tell that Stanley Kubrik was a huge inspiration for Cosmatos. The film has that slow and deliberate feel of 2001, with a strong 80's music, architecture and fashion style (considering it is set in the 1983) but at the same time you almost can't compare the 2 films. They are completely different. But its extremely beautiful and thoughtful and you can tell that Cosmatos and his crew took their time to create an underrated masterpiece. And though it may not be considered sci-fi, Enter the Void is another great cerebral, psychedelic treat from Gaspar Noe. It you enjoyed Donnie Darko and exploring the possibilities of what happens after death then Enter the Void is the flick for you.

@Mutha_Superior I see your post is from 2013 but I just wanted to say that I watched Beyond the Black Rainbow on netflix because of your suggestion & it blew me away. The visual art along with the soundscape sucked me in. I will admit I did get impatient with the story but I realized today that it really wasn't about the threads of storyline I was trying to cling to & put together to make sense of it all. I think I watched it all wrong by doing this & I will watch it again soon without searching around for "answers". Just wanted to say thank you for your suggestion. It really is a unique experience & I'm about to purchase it on Blu-ray. All kinds of emotions & thoughts ran through me during my viewing. Uneasiness & a little bit of horror & terror, "what's going on?", "this is awesome!", "what the heck did I just watch?" The mood, atmosphere, sound & visuals are what grabbed me about this movie. I spent too much time trying to "make sense" of BtBR when I should have just enjoyed the ride. What a ride it is. A very slow paced one but thrilling & chilling at the same time.

I don't know how many of you will agree, but "Star Trek - The Motion Picture" is possibly the most under-rated sci-film of the 80's. Maybe because it's a Star Trek film, but I really liked the concept - we (Earth) launch a probe (Voyager 6) into space - it disappears into a black hole and 300 years later it returns (rebuilt by a super intelligent race of machines) as a living machine consciousness, searching for its creator. I do believe that this is one movie that would be worthy of a remake if done properly.

I've seen all five films, and every one of them is worth your time, no doubt about it. I might quibble with "Silent Running" being on the list instead of "Moon", but choosing Primer for the #1 spot makes all forgiven.

My favorite underrated sci-fi is one from 1970: "Colossus: The Forbin Project". This is the mother of all deus ex-machina story lines, a very intelligent movie with a terrific character arc.

Definitely agree with THX1138 being on a longer list. I'd also like to see 'Love', 'Strange Days', 'another earth', and my number 1, 'Dark Star'. I bask in the glory of a film that manages to show man's complete lack of understanding of his place in the universe, in a deep and incredibly insightful way. For me it's like he's holding the bridge of his nose and shaking his head, eyes closed, at how we deal with our environment. all this, and on a $60,000 budget!!!

@Adeyfk Yeah I'd have to agree with the THX1138 comment, I've only seen it once but it was very memorable. I saw it in 1990 after renting it on VHS. I think the director could well do with some lessons on himself if he would return to this movie for inspiration. Lucas' latest work speaks more of a guy with too much money and not enough "that's a bad idea George, and let me tell you why" personalities to guide him, despite his "experience".

The Bothersome Man is an awesome Norwegian sci-fi/comedy/dark/bizarre flick. I've seen it several times (it's on Netflix) and is one of my favorites. I enjoyed Primer okay, but I loved Upstream Color to the max.

The Fountain is fantastic. I saw it almost on accident in theaters and I've watched it so many times since. Also, The Host, a Korean film, is absolutely amazing. I saw it on DVD probably in 2007. It's on Netflix now so watch it. And Soylent Green is good too, though probably not underrated now.And I know this is for movies, but I loved the tv show Farscape.

I'm sure it has been mentioned, but "Moon" is definitely in my top five.

The climax and ending may be a bit predictable, but it's a classic tale presented in a fantastic manner. And with a budget of only $5 million. Not to mention an amazing performance by one of my top 5 underrated actors.

What about Disney's 1979 The Black Hole? In spite of some hokey special effects, leaky science, wooden acting, and tone problems with the movie (Disney couldn't decide whether to aim the movie at kids or adults), I always thought this was a half-brilliant masterpiece. One reason it got snuffed is it was released the same weekend as Star Trek:The Motion Picture, but I always thought this film deserved more kudos than it ever got, and is, more than any other film, basis for my interest in science.

The positives are an ever-increasing sense of dread, a truly terrifying murderous robot in the form of Maximillian, some deeper questions about artificial life and what it means to be human, and one of the most iconic, recognizable starship designs of all time, in my opinion, with the U.S.S. Cygnus .

Proof of its under-rated-ness is the fact that "The Stuff" does not even seem to have made it into the comments even though it is truly one of the most thought provoking movies I have ever seen. Its metaphoric properties have only become more profound as the Madison Avenue becomes more aggressive at pushing miracle foods, drugs, and technologies down our throats without adequate testing or full knowledge of the consequences (GMO foods, for instance). Based on a Ray Bradbury story if my recollection serves. Continues to haunt me even 30 years or so later. Great performance by Michael Moriarty, and a star turn by Garrett Morris in what may have been his first post-SNL film role.

From the list, I did not like Silent Running, which I watched after learning of it in an episode of "Six Feet Under".

And Primer, the problem with it may not be that it is underrated, but misunderstood. The plot is SO convoluted that I know of no-one who wouldn't have a headache just by trying to understand all of it at once... Even with help:

@ekiza23 I was also thinking Mr. Nobody. Its a great film and i never understood why it hadn't gotten the praises it should. Turns out its only coming to cinemas in the States right now - even though it was first released in 2009. If you go to their facebook page you can see there is a lot of advertising going on for it, new posters and all. So lets hope it now gets some more attention :)

@seltz.designI only recently heard of Mr. Nobody, and I can't wait to see it when it comes out. I had thought it wasn't out yet, but when I looked on imdb it said it came out in 2009, but I couldn't find it anywhere, then I saw somewhere that it's not out yet. So I have been really confused about that. Where did you see it?

Hi Steve, you've listed some of my preferred sci-fi movies: Dark City, which I find very intriguing, and Gattaca, which I consider one of the smartest way to let sci-fi talk face with nowadays's problems, in this case discrimination.

Let me suggest you to add another minor production which has tried to deal with conflicts among different races: Enemy Mine ( 1985 ).